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Tales from my five day comedy binge!

Comedy makes everything better. How is that for an overarching generalization? I can tell you that during extremely stressful times in my employment and “romantic” history, I have turned to comedy for relief. I mean you have to admit that during downtrodden times, laughter feels like a welcome relief. Currently my life is in a somewhat stressful influx and the one thing that has brought me consistent joy these days has been my dalliances with improv through shows and classes. I make time in my hectic work schedule for improv, not just because I love it dearly but because I really think I would be a miserable basketcase without it these days.

From Wednesday to Sunday of this past week, I had a little bit of that comedy magic mixed through my days and I have a lot of gushing coming your way folks so get your spectacles out and let’s do this!

Kaboom Hooray – The Premise Show

After a particularly crazy day at work, I trudged through a rainy, snowy windstorm for some of that sweet comedy relief and I was not disappointed. This was a new to me format featuring 10 minute stand-up sets from 3 comics followed by an improvised interpretation from the ever dynamic Obviously Improv. There were killer jokes about hilarious issues such as revenge anal and other weird stuff that really gave Obviously Improv a ton of funny material to create imaginative and engaging scenes with. During the whole night there was kind of a buzz in the air. The kind you feel on one of those nights where everything just goes to plan and exceed expectations. The jokes resonated, the scenes breathe life into the stories and the audience reacted with laughter at a night that totally nailed timing and delivery. It was spectacular start to my improv binge.

Date Yourself

This was the show that I performed in and went all gushy about here! And my second of the five night stalking of Obviously Improv.

Kinkonauts Show Week

Oh man do I love me some Kinkonauts Show week y’all! This theatre group makes me excited about comedy and improv in Calgary with their unique offerings in shows and classes. I have so much blog love to share about my two lovely nights watching this talented group of weirdos, so please bear with me!

4 Minutes until Curtain

These were the young superstars of the Lord Beaverbrook Improv Team! They reminded me so much of why I loved improvising in high school. You’ve got this huge stage to perform and practice on, you’ve got the hyperness and inhibition of your teenage years and your imagination is allowed to run rampant. They were talented, brave and so very funny! It brought me back to a very nostalgic happy place to watch them perform.

Dream Toast

I have love for Dream Toast! I voted for them at Catching Funds last week and those crazy cats delivered on their sandwich promise to me. I’m consistently won over by the delivery of carbs. They are also pretty fabulous improviser too, with a really cool format to their show. I am always so engaged by the complex tales spun from monologues of their personal stories, inspired by audience suggestions. Each player brings a load of talent with a unique perspective of their own that all seem to work cohesively form the deliciousness of Dream Toast!

John Hughes Improvised featuring Paper Street Theatre Co.

So you would think seeing the same improv show two nights in a row would equate to a lot of redundancy, right? Well not with this bunch, the only thing redundant about the two night John Hughes Improvised performances was the beautiful faces of the cast. The stories were unique, dynamic and offered all the hilariousness of improv and melodrama of ‘80s high school movies like Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink. The Kinkonaut players are so good and fast with their delivery that it almost feels scripted and knowing that is not, makes them improv Gods in my head. I was really excited to see improviser from Victoria add a really cool dynamic to the John Hughes theme that they had originally produced on their glorious island. I love when the national improv community comes together on projects like this!

Fatale

This was the Opening Act for 9pm Friday Show and it featured many of the talented lady Kinkonauts improvisers. Apparently the comedy and improv scene can be somewhat of a boys club. I sort disagree completely with that perception because some of the funniest people I know – Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Sarah Silverman, Jackie Fries, Laura Tennisco and so many more – are well equipped lady parts and they are stupid funny! Take that, “boys club”! Fatale was wonderful and made me so proud to be an aspiring lady improviser!

Obviously Improv

Oh hey guys, it is me in the audience again! Please don’t get a restrainer order, I just love your comedy so much! <Insert awkward laugh here>… Obviously Improv delivered another unique, fast paced and hilarious set Friday night! There awesomeness is almost redundant but something about watching them inspires me to perform! They are so high energy and detailed with their improv and offer unique (to me) short form games like Improvised Ballets and One-sided play reads (where one person reads of a play book and the other person improvises responses) and watching them three or four days in a row never gets boring.

One Lions

I have heard a ton about One Lions, featuring the ridonkulously talented Covy Holland and Stephen Kent, but I had never had a chance to catch their act until Friday night. And I now that I have, I feel like there are no adequate words to describe the random, hilarious weirdness that unfolded in front of me. I watched the whole show, based on the concept of two guys making small talk while waiting around for a guest to arrive, with my head tilted curiously to the side. The content was whack in the best way possible and my ribs hurt from excessive laughing. This description does not do this show any justice at all, GO CHECK OUT ONE LIONS!

Beatdown

Another awesome Kinkonaut Troupe that features the unique stylings of some hilarious improvisers. I really liked how each member brought a different ability and element to their performance. They have a really weird and fun way of switching scenes with dramatic catastrophes. “Then suddenly the scene melted and flooded the streets of Calgary” – that is not a direct quote… I just made that example up! Beatdown is always a joy to watch!

Notorious

These guys are my modern day Backstreet Boys! I seriously am never disappointed by a Notorious set. I feel like the huge theatre space gave them a lot more room to get a little crazier with their scenes which was fun to see. Notorious amps up a crowd with ease and it is always a laugh-filled experience to watch these guys play!

Mixed Tape

This has to be one of my favourite improv shows I have ever been to. The theme of this Mix Tape was an ‘80s soundtrack and featured players from the Kinkonauts, Obviously Improv and Paper Street Theatre Co. The show was kind of weird this time around and I, of course, love me some weird comedy yo. The scene transitions were killer, the soundtrack delightful and the show as a whole was another joyful success.

And scene…

If you’ve are still reading here – holy shit, thank you so much! Improv adds a sense of bliss to my life. And if you tend be a stress-case like me, may I suggest you catch some of the amazing comedy happening Calgary these days. The stories you’ll watch, the feeling of the crowd getting really into the show and the release of your own laughter – will lighten your load! I promise!